Canadian Pendrith 1 shot back at Canadian Open

The 108th Canadian Men's Amateur Golf Championships took place at the Camelot Golf and Country Club in Ottawa Thursday Aug 9 2012. Taylor Pendrith, of Richmond Hill Ontario, hits a iron shot during Thursday's round. (QMI AGENCY/Tony Caldwell/Ottawa Sun)

Pendrith is technically an amateur, but he played like a seasoned pro in his first PGA Tour start on Thursday at the Royal Montreal Golf Club. In the opening round, the 23-year-old scored an eye-popping 5-under 65 and sits tied for third, one shot behind co-leading Americans Michael Putnam and Tim Petrovic. Also at 65 is Kyle Stanley of the U.S.

Pendrith’s showing on a sunny and windy summer day in Montreal was the talk of the tournament. He is a natural, all-sport athlete who didn’t start playing golf until 12 and didn’t take part in his first tournament until 15.